About 13% of seven-year-old and 30% of eight-year-old girls in a new study were showing signs of entering puberty based on the development of their breast tissue.
- Researchers from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and Kaiser Permanente in San Francisco asked 1239 girls to undergo physical examinations.
- About 30% were either white, black or Hispanic, and 5% were Asian.
- Among the eight-year-olds, 42.9% of the blacks, 30.9% of the Hispanic, and 18.3% of the white girls were showing signs of entering puberty.
The age of the onset of puberty has been lowering for decades, and most doctors attribute that fact to better nutrition. However, there is concern of a relationship between early puberty and childhood obesity or environmental factors that are not yet completely understood.
- Many experts on child development express concern that girls are not able to handle the hormonal changes and sexual advances from men and boys at such young ages.
- Cancer experts warn that early menstruation may be related to increased risk for breast cancer.
"It's certainly throwing up a warning flag," said Dr. Frank Brio, lead author of the study. "I think we need to think about the stuff we're exposing our bodies to and the bodies of our kids. This is a wake-up call, and I think we need to pay attention to it."
This study appears in the journal Pediatrics.
Posted By: CRC Health
